-by John Fearnall

Some musings on the Koodo mural/Ad and accompanying video/commercial in downtown Owen Sound.

As this is the type of stuff I deal with in my high school media class (we will be discussing this on Monday) and I have yet to weigh in on the subject, I thought I'd throw some ideas out there regarding this somewhat controversial piece.

1) Despite what they claim, Koodo is not doing this because they like us. This is an ad and an attempt for  us to think of them positively. As I always ask when these types of campaigns come out, If they really cared and appreciated our city, why didn't they just give the money spent on this campaign to the city? In my opinion, the worst examples are the campaigns where corporations donate small amounts of money, but spend 10 times (or much more) that amount telling us about it.

2) I find it interesting that for years, corporations abandoned downtowns (public spaces) for malls and big box stores (private spaces). This may not seem like a big deal, but you have to remember that people do not have the same rights in private spaces.

For example, I can take my soap box downtown and share my thoughts with anyone who will listen, but if I tried the same thing in a mall or even in the Wal-Mart parking lot, I would quickly be asked to leave and probably escorted from the property if I refused. (I wonder what would happen if I protested in front of the mural?)

So, why are they returning now? Probably because they are trying to "cut through the clutter" of advertising. There is so much advertising out there now that marketers are desperate to find new, unclaimed space. The question is, where do we draw the line?

Here is an interesting article I use in my class on how marketers are moving away from claiming physical space to mental space. "The Tragedy of the Mental Commons"

 3) If we truly value public space and public discourse, perhaps we need to consider what places like Sao Paulo have done - banning all outdoor advertising. I must admit, I get a little annoyed with all of the messages strewn throughout the city. No one asked me if this was okay. And I think our city would be much more unique if we did away with all of these corporate messages that invade every city.

I've always been tempted to actually change one of these billboards to see what would happen (there is a group called the Billboard Liberation Front in California who used to do this regularly). As I heard one of them say, "If these corporations have the right to come into my community with messages that hurt my community, then I have the right to change that message so it is more truthful, as well."

4) The irony is that in today's world, advertisers are looking for impressions, both positive and negative. I am doing exactly what they want by posting this. So, with this in mind, are we long past the point where these debates even matter? Have we lost the battle and don't even know it?

5) I am a relatively happy Koodo customer (not meant to be a plug. Just thought it was important to mention).

Thoughts?